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Jonathan Drouin

Islanders Sign Jonathan Drouin To Two-Year Deal

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The Islanders announced they’ve signed winger Jonathan Drouin to a two-year contract. The deal is worth $4MM per season, Frank Seravalli reports.

Similarly to their recruitment of winger Anthony Duclair last offseason, the Islanders have looked to the second-tier options for forwards to fix their offensive woes. In Drouin, they’ll add a silky playmaking winger into their top-six.

The former third-overall pick has played for the Colorado Avalanche for the past two years, though he struggled with injuries last season. Throughout his two-year stint, Drouin scored 30 goals and 93 points in 122 games with a +16 rating, averaging 18:11 of ice time.

Remarkably, even after ten years in the NHL, Drouin’s first season in Colorado was his best individual campaign yet. Besides him achieving a career-high 56 points during the 2023-24 campaign, Drouin averaged a 57.0% CorsiFor% at even strength during his tenure in Denver. It’s hard to imagine that he’s capable of driving his line, but the Islanders can place him next to Bo Horvat or Mathew Barzal and expect quality production.

If they have any hopes of contending during the 2025-26 season, New York desperately needed to add more offense. They faced financial constraints due to the number of restricted free agents they needed to sign. Drouin gives them the best of both worlds, offering quality secondary scoring production while leaving enough room for the Islanders to have enough space to re-up their remaining RFAs.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Snapshots: Pageau, Grubauer, Avalanche, Dobson

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While there has been strong trade interest in Islanders center Jean-Gabriel Pageau, it doesn’t appear as if he’s in play.  Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic report (subscription link) that the Isles have informed teams that they won’t be moving the 32-year-old.  The 32-year-old is coming off one of his better years offensively after tallying 42 points in 79 games while winning nearly 60% of his faceoffs.  A capable checker, Pageau will be entering the final year of his contract next season on a deal that carries a $5MM cap charge.  Given the lack of depth in the center market, New York likely would have been well-positioned to land a return of some value for Pageau’s services but it appears now that they’ll hold onto him and potentially reassess his situation closer to the trade deadline in March.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • Kraken GM Jason Botterill confirmed to reporters including Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times that the team will not be buying out goaltender Philipp Grubauer by Monday’s deadline. The 33-year-old had a rocky performance this season, posting a 3.49 GAA with a .875 SV% in 26 starts, resulting in a stint with AHL Coachella Valley after clearing waivers.  Grubauer has two years left on his contract that carries a $5.9MM cap charge and while Seattle would have been able to open up nearly $4MM in room this summer with a buyout, Botterill instead will keep him around with the belief that he’ll be able to bounce back next season.
  • Avalanche pending unrestricted free agents Jonathan Drouin and Ryan Lindgren are expected to hit the open market next week, relays Peter Baugh of The Athletic (subscription link). Drouin reached free agency last year as well before re-signing a one-year, $2.5MM deal.  The winger put up 37 points in 45 games this season.  Meanwhile, Lindgren was acquired at the trade deadline and put up 22 points in 72 games this year with the blueliner playing on a $4.5MM contract.  After yesterday’s trade of Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood to Columbus, the Avs have nearly $9MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, giving GM Chris McFarland more wiggle room to work with in reshaping his roster this summer.
  • Noah Dobson’s new contract with the Canadiens contains just a 14-team no-trade clause beginning in 2026-27, PuckPedia reports (Twitter link). He was not eligible for any trade protection next season since that was an RFA-eligible year and RFA-eligible players can’t have any trade restrictions.  The deal was heavily front-loaded with $33MM in signing bonus money over the first three seasons of the agreement.

How Will The Colorado Avalanche Re-Tool This Summer?

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After one of the busiest trade deadlines since their run to a Stanley Cup championship in 2022, the Colorado Avalanche fell short this spring, losing in Round One to the Dallas Stars. Last week, Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette analyzed six pending unrestricted free agents that the team could look to keep for next year’s iteration of the roster.

Despite shedding Mikko Rantanen’s $9.25MM salary and not retaining him beyond this season, Rawal correctly points out that Colorado only has $8.7MM in salary cap space heading into the summer with 18 players already signed. Given their financial flexibility, it’s unlikely the Avalanche will re-sign Brock Nelson, Jonathan Drouin, Ryan Lindgren, Joel Kiviranta, Jimmy Vesey, and Erik Johnson.

If Colorado doesn’t bring back Nelson, they’ll again peruse the trade and free agent markets for a second-line center. He performed mildly well upon joining the Avalanche, scoring six goals and 13 points in 19 games, with another four assists in seven postseason contests. However, Nelson reportedly spurned a three-year, $22.5MM offer from the New York Islanders, meaning he’d leave Colorado with very little wiggle room if he were to sign a similar contract.

Being a limited center class in the free-agent market, the Avalanche would likely turn to the trade market to fill the gap. Unfortunately, after trading away several assets at the 2024-25 trade deadline, they’ll have little to offer other teams for a true second-line middleman.

It is unlikely that Colorado will re-sign Lindgren beyond this season unless he agrees to a significantly lower salary than his current $4.5MM. Lindgren’s future with the team could tie together with the health status of defenseman Josh Manson, who missed a large chunk of the 2024-25 season due to injury. If the Avalanche are confident Manson will open the 2025-26 season on the team’s long-term injured reserve, they may be interested in retaining Lindgren and his similar playstyle.

The last player Rawal believes the Avalanche will shy away from is Kiviranta. It’s not so much that Kiviranta wasn’t valuable to Colorado during the 2024-25 season, but because it’ll be hard to predict which player they’re getting. Kiviranta exploded for 16 goals in 79 games this season with a 19.0% shooting percentage, offering the Avalanche flexibility to move him up and down the lineup. Still, it may be unwise to significantly raise Kiviranta’s salary, considering he averaged an 8.1% shooting percentage over 219 games from 2019 to 2024.

The trio Rawal believes will likely stay in Colorado for at least the next season includes Drouin, Vesey, and Johnson. Drouin spurned longer-term offers last summer to re-up on a one-year, $2.5MM deal with the Avalanche this year. There’s a good chance Drouin’s injury history will drive other teams away from offering long-term deals this summer, meaning Colorado could re-sign him again on a below-market deal.

Vesey and Johnson should be available at a low price, but they might choose to leave on their own accord. Vesey was very outspoken about his discontent with the New York Rangers for lack of playing time, and none of that changed in Denver. Meanwhile, although Johnson has spent much of his career in Colorado and has publicly shown his admiration for the organization, he’s a prime retirement candidate this offseason.

Injury Notes: Golden Knights, Avalanche, Middleton

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The Vegas Golden Knights were one of many teams to get a wave of positive injury updates on Friday. Neither star forward Jack Eichel nor top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo are expected to play on Saturday, but both are nearing a return, head coach Bruce Cassidy told Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Both players have missed Vegas’ last two games – Eichel with a day-to-day upper-body injury and Pietrangelo with illness. That same illness has also held winger Victor Olofsson and defender Nicolas Hague out of Vegas’ last two games. Cassidy shared that he had no updates on the latter two absentees, as they’re away from the rink with their sickness.

Getting Eichel back from injury will be a major addition as Vegas prepares for the postseason. He leads the squad in scoring this year with 27 goals and 93 points in 76 games – nearly 30 more points than Mark Stone’s 67 points ranked second. This is Eichel’s first season playing more than 70 games since the 2018-19 season, when he recorded his previous career-high 82 points with the Buffalo Sabres. The year has been more a return to routine health than a true breakout, but either way, Eichel has smashed his career-mark and is set to rival 100 points for the first time in his career. He’ll likely fall just short, as Vegas has just two games left after Saturday’s matchup against Nashville.

Meanwhile, Pietrangelo leads a strong – but sick – supporting cast. He has 33 points in 70 games this season, third-most on the Vegas blue-line. Pietrangelo leads the Golden Knights lineup in average ice time per game with 22:24 – surprisingly the lowest ice time average he’s recorded since his rookie season in 2010-11. He’ll jump right back to a top-pair role when he returns, while Olofsson and Hague will find their way in Vegas’ middle lines. Olofsson has managed 14 goals and 27 points in 54 games this season – stout scoring for his first year with the club. Hague, meanwhile, once again ranks near the bottom of scoring among Golden Knights defenders, with just 11 points in 66 games so far.

Other injury notes from around the league:

  • A pair of veteran members of the Avalanche took a step toward returning as Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette relays that winger Jonathan Drouin joined the team for practice yesterday in a non-contact jersey as he works his way back from a lower-body injury.  Meanwhile, defenseman Josh Manson (upper body) skated on his own.  Drouin has been banged up all season but has been productive when healthy, collecting 37 points in 43 games, good for sixth on the team in scoring despite missing 37 contests.  Manson, meanwhile, has been out for nearly a month now but has done well when playing, collecting 15 points in 48 games while averaging a little over 18 minutes per night of playing time.
  • Wild defenseman Jacob Middleton missed his third straight game last night due to an upper-body injury.  However, Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune notes that the blueliner is a possibility to return for tonight’s contest in Vancouver.  Middleton has been a critical part of Minnesota’s back end this year, logging nearly 22 minutes per game of ice time while also chipping in with 20 points in 66 outings.  The Wild are still trying to lock down a playoff spot and getting Middleton back would be a big boost to help them try to do just that.

PHR’s Brian La Rose also contributed to this post.

Injury Updates: Doughty, Laferierre, Drouin, Joshua

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There could be some good news on the horizon for Kings defenseman Drew Doughty.  Darren Dreger reported in TSN’s latest Insider Trading segment that the blueliner could practice in a non-contact capacity next week.  At this point, the team is hoping that the 35-year-old could return to the lineup before next month’s 4 Nations Face-Off.  Doughty has yet to play this season due to an ankle injury, causing a big blow to Los Angeles’ back end.  The Kings are currently using LTIR and haven’t banked much cap space so when Doughty does return, their cap flexibility will take a hit but their blueline will get a significant boost as they look to move up in the Pacific Division.

Other injury news from around the NHL:

  • Still with the Kings, Zach Dooley of LA Kings Insider relays that winger Alex Laferriere won’t play on Thursday due to an upper-body injury with a further update on his status expected later in the week. The 23-year-old is having a strong sophomore year, notching 13 goals and 13 assists through his first 41 games, already besting his numbers from last season.  His absence should open up a spot for Samuel Helenius – just recalled today – to get into the lineup.
  • Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin has battled injury issues this season and it appears that the injury is something he’s going to be battling for a while yet. He told reporters including Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette that this is something that’s likely to linger for the next little while and is hoping that the long break for the 4 Nations Face-Off will allow the injury – Rawal indicates that it’s a rib issue – to properly heal.  When healthy, Drouin has fared quite well with 10 points in 12 games but it’s fair to say that this hasn’t been the best first half in what is another contract year for him.
  • Canucks forward Dakota Joshua has skated a couple of times as he starts to work his way back from a leg injury suffered earlier this month, notes Postmedia’s Patrick Johnston. However, they’ve been light skates and he’s still not particularly close to returning as he remains listed as week-to-week.  After a breakout showing last season, this year hasn’t gone as well for Joshua (who missed the start of it while recovering from testicular cancer) as he has just four points along with 83 hits in 24 games.

Avalanche Activate Jonathan Drouin, Place Ivan Ivan On IR

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Dec. 31st: As expected, the Avalanche have officially activated Drouin from the injured reserve for today’s matchup. On the flip side, the team has also placed Ivan on the injured reserve with multiple reports indicating he’ll be out for the next few weeks.

Dec. 30th: The Colorado Avalanche are expected to activate forward Jonathan Drouin off the injured reserve tomorrow, meaning that the 29-year-old would be back in the lineup tomorrow night against the Winnipeg Jets (as per Corey Masisak of The Denver Post). Drouin has been dealing with an upper-body injury that caused him to miss 16 games, and it was his second extended absence of the season.

Drouin has been good when healthy, dressing in just five games this year for Colorado, posting two goals and two assists while averaging 20:40 of ice time. The former third-overall pick was terrific for Colorado last year with 56 points in 79 games but was unable to secure a long-term deal in free agency this past summer, opting instead to return to the Avalanche on a one-year deal worth $2.5MM. Drouin will have roughly half the season to prove his worth before hitting free agency once again next summer.

In other Avalanche news, forward Ivan Ivan has an upper-body injury and may miss some time, although he is still being evaluated. The 22-year-old was likely coming out of the lineup with the return of Drouin and could be scratched tomorrow regardless of his health. Ivan probably wasn’t ready to be thrust into an NHL role this season, but circumstance has allowed him to dress in 37 games for the Avalanche where he has played just over ten minutes a night, chipping in five goals and three assists.

Central Notes: Stars, Avalanche, Wild, Bortuzzo

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The Stars are being investigated by the league for a possible CBA violation over the holiday break, report Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic (subscription link).  Head coach Peter DeBoer indicated on Friday that there was an optional skate held on Thursday.  However, teams aren’t permitted to hold any sort of on-ice sessions with players between December 24th and 26th with this skate being held on the 26th.  The league sent a memo to all 32 teams on Monday reminding them of the rule prohibiting travel or ice time.  Back in 2022, Toronto was fined $100K for violating the travel portion of the rule so if the league levies a penalty to Dallas following their investigation, it’s likely to be at or above that amount.

More from the Central:

  • Avalanche defenseman Oliver Kylington had been listed as out week-to-week but that has been changed to month-to-month, reports NHL.com’s Ryan Boulding (Bluesky link). He has missed the last four weeks with an upper-body injury but hasn’t been progressing in his recovery.  However, there should be some good news coming on the injury front as Boulding adds that winger Jonathan Drouin could return on Tuesday.  He has missed the last month with an upper-body injury and has been limited to just five games so far this season due to injuries.
  • Wild center Joel Eriksson Ek skated today and the team is hopeful he can return to the lineup in one of Minnesota’s next two games, notes Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (Twitter link). He has missed a little more than three weeks with a lower-body injury and while he was off to a rough start offensively with 13 points in 22 games, he’d be a welcome addition to a Wild group that has struggled in recent weeks.
  • Utah defenseman Robert Bortuzzo skated with the team today and has been cleared for contact, relays Brogan Houston of the Deseret News (Twitter link). The veteran has missed a little over two weeks so far due to a lower-body injury.  Bortuzzo has played in 15 games this season but has been limited to just two assists in a little over 11 minutes a night of ice time.

Avalanche Activate Ross Colton, Place Jonathan Drouin On IR

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The Avalanche will welcome back an important forward tonight as the team announced (Twitter link) that forward Ross Colton has been activated off LTIR.  To make room for him on the active roster, winger Jonathan Drouin has been moved to injured reserve retroactive to November 23rd.

Colton will make his return versus Detroit tonight after missing the last 17 games.  The 28-year-old was shifted to LTIR earlier this week but since it was retroactive to late October when he first sustained his foot injury, he has already missed the required 10 games and 24 days to return to the lineup.

Before being injured, Colton was off to a hot start with eight goals and an assist while logging 18:38 per game, more than five minutes higher than his career average ATOI.  He’s expected to start on the second line but head coach Jared Bednar has indicated that he wants to move Colton onto the top line in the near future.

As for Drouin, he has missed the last two weeks due to an upper-body injury but has been skating in recent days.  The retroactive placement for him means he’s already missed the required seven days to return to the lineup so as soon as he’s cleared by team doctors, he can be activated.

His second season with the Avs hasn’t gone as well as his first.  After putting up 19 goals and 37 assists for a career-best 56 points in 2023-24, Drouin’s upper-body injury troubles have limited him to just five games so far.  While he has been relatively productive in those with two goals and two assists, this certainly hasn’t been the start to the season he has wanted, especially with it being another contract year after inking a one-year, $2.5MM deal to return to the Avs in free agency back in the summer.

Avalanche Issue Multiple Injury Updates

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The season has brought a never-ending string of injuries for the Colorado Avalanche. They’re facing absences to five different players – including Gabriel Landeskog and Ross Colton, who are each on injured reserve, and Jonathan Drouin, who is week-to-week. Unfortunately, their injury list is only going to grow longer – with Meghan Angley of Guerilla Sports sharing that Oliver Kylington is day-to-day, Josh Manson is week-to-week, and Miles Wood is month-to-month. All three players are dealing with upper-body injuries.

Manson’s injury is the most pressing of the new set. The top-four defender left the team’s Friday loss to Dallas in the second period after falling awkwardly into the boards. He dropped his gloves immediately and seemed to be favoring his wrist or hand. Manson has been a key piece of the Avalanche blue-line with reliable depth injured around him. He averaged nearly 20 minutes of ice time through five games before injury, recording one assist and seven shots on net in the role. Manson’s season-long stat line sits at six points, 16 penalty minutes, and a team-leading 51 hits in 24 games. He was replaced on Saturday by John Ludvig, playing in just his sixth game of the season. Ludvig has two points and 11 hits this season – putting him on pace to rival Manson’s stats across 24 games, if he keeps up this pace of points and hits.

Kylington’s injury is also new. Kylington seemed to sustain the injury in Colorado’s Wednesday win over Vegas. He didn’t play in either game this weekend, and is now confirmed as needing a bit more time until he’s back to full health. Kylington has two points, four penalty minutes, and a -2 through eight appearances this season. He’s been a depth defender at-best when the lineup calls on him, but Manson joining the list of injuries could open more of a role if Kylington returns soon.

The injuries to the forward group are old news by this point. Drouin’s upper-body injury is technically new, suffered on November 27th, though it returns him to an inactive list that he’s already spent three weeks on this season. Drouin suffered what’s believed to be a separate upper-body injury in Colorado’s season opener, and was placed on injured reserve from October 20th to November 14th. He’s only played in five games this season, but has managed an impressive four points – split evenly – while averaging over 20 minutes of ice time. Miles Wood is in a similar spot, headed to IR from October 28th to November 14th – then reinjuring himself and moving back to the reserve just two weeks later. He’ll now be out for the long-term, depriving Colorado of an impactful depth forward who had three points in 16 games this season.

Colorado already recalled Nikita Prishchepov in response to new injuries, but could also look into a depth defenseman with Manson now out for the foreseeable future. Their best options would likely be veteran depth defenders Jacob MacDonald and Calle Rosen – though both players, and the rest of the Eagles blue-line, are left-handed; the opposite side of right-shot Manson.

Avalanche’s Jonathan Drouin Out Week-To-Week

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10:06 a.m.: With Drouin set to miss extended time once again, the Avalanche announced they’ve recalled first-year pro Chase Bradley from AHL Colorado. Bradley, 22, has three goals and an assist in 17 games after signing an entry-level deal with the Avs over the summer. Drafted in the seventh round by the Red Wings in 2020, Detroit decided to forego his signing rights after Bradley opted to turn pro after his junior year with the University of Connecticut.

Paper transactions demoting Nikolai Kovalenko and Ivan Ivan were also reversed, bringing them back up to the NHL roster ahead of tonight’s game against the Golden Knights. The Avs had an open roster spot for Bradley, so Drouin doesn’t need to land on injured reserve to accommodate his recall.

9:29 a.m.: Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury, head coach Jared Bednar said on 92.5 FM Altitude Sports Radio on Wednesday (via Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette).

Drouin, 29, missed Monday’s 8-2 defeat at the hands of the Lightning with the ailment. It’s unclear when he sustained the injury and if it’s related to the upper-body issue he suffered in the season opener that cost him 16 games.

The Quebec native had just recently returned to action from that previous upper-body issue on Nov. 15. His most recent appearance, a 7-4 win over the Panthers on Saturday, was easily the best performance of his five showings this season. He played a season-high 23:37 and scored twice on four shots, his first two goals of the campaign.

The 11-year veteran now faces another longer-term absence in an injury-riddled 2024-25 campaign for the Avs. They’ve had at least three regular forwards out of the lineup for most games this season, including a brief stretch around Halloween where they were without four of their top five wingers. They were down to just captain Gabriel Landeskog and Ross Colton being unavailable for the past few games, but they’ll again be without a trio of top-nine pieces for the next couple of weeks. Colton isn’t due back until the middle of December after sustaining a broken foot late last month.

Drouin has almost exclusively served as Colorado’s top-line left wing alongside former major junior teammate Nathan MacKinnon in his brief action this season, although he has seen a few reps on the second line alongside Casey Mittelstadt and Valeri Nichushkin. He had four points in five games while averaging a career-high 20:40 per game, on pace for the best year of his career if not for his upper-body injuries.

The third overall pick in the 2013 draft is coming off a career-best 2023-24 campaign, his first in Colorado. He recorded a career-best 37 assists, 56 points, a +12 rating, and 33 blocks en route to receiving a one-year, $2.5MM deal to return to the Avs on July 1.

Rookie Ivan Ivan slid into a top-six role alongside Mittelstadt and Nichushkin with Drouin out on Monday and could continue to do so on a trial basis. The 22-year-old has been passable, with eight points in 22 games to pair with strong possession numbers (54.3 CF%, 52.0 xGF%).

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